Tim Cindric, president of Team Penske and the race strategist that has helped guide Newgarden to a breakout, four-win, championship-caliber Verizon IndyCar Series season, sidled in with a serene façade.

Scott Dixon is vying for his fifth Verizon IndyCar Series championship. His No. 9 Honda will be looming large in the mirror of points leader Josef Newgarden come Sunday at Sonoma Raceway. (Shanna Lockwood, USA TODAY Sports)

Newgarden, who had finished 18th after crashing into a guard rail exiting a late pit stop – was correct in asserting that Dixon would be in contention in the final on Sunday at Sonoma Raceway no matter what he had done at Watkins Glen. The double allotment of points awarded in the final all but assured that.

And, yes, Newgarden’s teammates, defending series champion Simon Pagenaud, Helio Castroneves and to a lesser statistical likelihood, Will Power, also were attempting to take what he so wanted.

But even after winning three of the last five races, and finishing second in another, Newgarden emanated the vibe of the driver who had just let it all slip away. A 31-point lead had become three. That was bad enough.

But Dixon, man. That guy. The closer. The Iceman, with four titles – two coming since 2013. Why did it have to be Dixon such an inconsequential three points behind?

This is not to say that Newgarden will fold heading into the final, follow the path of Penske’s Ryan Briscoe, who in 2009 suffered a self-inflicted pit stop gaffe in the next-to-last race of the season to scuttle a championship.

This is not to say that Newgarden, in his haste to dispatch one of his ultra-competitive teammates, will suffer an on-track calamity of his doing, like Penske’s points-leading Juan Pablo Montoya colliding with Power and ceding the title on tie-breakers to race-winner and champion Dixon in 2015.

Newgarden doesn’t have to make a mistake. The 37-year-old New Zealander seems preternaturally able to grasp a moment that seems just beyond reach, and this one seems very much there for the taking.

Dixon knows the route to the championship stage. He knows it doesn’t matter how late the step to the top of the podium comes. And he seems at his best when chasing a Penske driver, the constant foil of he and his Chip Ganassi Racing team. Before dispatching Montoya in 2015, he won his previous title in 2013 by chasing down Castroneves in the second race of a doubleheader at Houston – Dixon finished second, Castroneves 23rd – and finished one position higher in the final at Fontana, Calif., to win comfortably.

Dixon isn’t one to openly discuss his accomplishments or shortcomings of a competitor. Or how having won four titles and establishing himself as one of the greatest open-wheel drivers ever gives him an advantage over a hungry foe in his first year of a dream ride attempting to justify the faith of a legendary owner. He’ll grin that wry smile when the question is posed and talk his way around it. All of which makes his pursuit all the more nefarious to those who chases.

There is no motivational quip for Newgarden to apply, just the knowledge that Dixon is ever-so-close to taking what he has built over the first 16 races of the season.